. >> reporter: in his saturday weekly address, president obama signaled he is open to making cuts on programs like medicare and medicaid if republicans agree to raise tax rates for the rich. >> i'm willing to find ways to bring down the cost of healthcare without hurting seniors and other americans who depend on it. and i'm willing to make more entitlement spending cuts on top of the $1 trillion in spending cuts i signed into law last year. >> reporter: his remarks came one day after house speaker john boehner announced the talks were stalled. >> well, this isn't a progress report, because there's no progress to report. >> reporter: his democratic counterpart, nancy pelosi, blames boehner for the stalemate. >> what they offered in return was an empty letter, lacking in specifics. >> reporter: such is the state of negotiations 23 days before the deadline, when federal income tax rates will revert to higher clinton era levels, 2% payroll tax cuts will expire, and long-term unemployment benefits will dry up for over 2 million americans who have been out of work for six months or more. o